WINTER ISSUE JANUARY 2019 AEROGRAM NEWSLETTER HAMMONDSPORT, NY CURTISSMUSEUM.COM AEROGRAM 01

LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR

It’s hard to believe that 2018 has come and gone. Though the weather didn’t always cooperate with us, we hope you enjoyed the year as much as we did! It was a remarkable year filled with outstanding people, programs, and events from Wintercycle Therapy in February, the Curtiss Classic Golf Tournament in August, and Wings and Wheels in September. Our C-46 got a face-lift, and our new entrance will be completed by the time the ball drops on January 1. We have so many people to thank, but above all we could not do it without the support of our friends and partners like you. So THANK YOU from all of us!

As we look ahead to 2019, we are extremely excited about the events and programs in store. In addition to our annual events and the many educational programs offered throughout the spring and summer, we are looking forward to a truly historic celebration. Next year marks the 100th anniversary of a remarkable and little known achievement deserving of greater praise and recognition. In May 1919 three Navy-Curtiss (NC) flying boats departed Rockaway Beach, but only one would reach its destination. Over the ensuing weeks the aircraft and their crews endured mechanical trouble, poor weather, and daunting North Atlantic as they attempted the first trans-Atlantic crossing by air via Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, the , and Portugal before finally coming to rest in Plymouth, England. Next year the Curtiss Museum will recognize this outstanding achievement with a special exhibit and associated programming to shed light on this all-but-forgotten achievement.

CONTENTS Stay tuned for more information, and see you in 2019!

1928 Indian Four (on display)...... Cover Letter from the Director...... 01 Wings & Wheels 2018...... 02 "First Across" Exhibit Preview...... 04 Restoration Shop Update...... 06 BENJAMIN JOHNSON OX5 Aviation Pioneers...... 07 Executive Director The Early Curtiss Years − Rediscovered: Part II...... 08 Wintercycle Therapy 2019...... 09 Planned Giving: Create A Lasting Legacy...... Back Cover 02 AEROGRAM AEROGRAM 03 WINGS & WHEELS 2018

Great weather brought record crowds to Hammondsport September 15th and 16th for Wings & Wheels 2018! The annual fly-in and classic/exotic car show was a resounding success for the Curtiss Museum and the greater Hammondsport area. Eighteen aircraft and more than one hundred cars filled the skies and streets around Hammondsport for two days of motorized fun.

For those in attendance, it was truly an event to remember. More than 104 years after leaving the Curtiss factory in 1914, an original returned to Hammondsport for a few last flights before heading to its new home in Stowe, MA. This year’s special visitor was the result of more than two years of restoration work by Century Aviation in Wenatchee, WA. Rescued from a barn in Connecticut, the aircraft was essentially intact except for a few places where time and Mother Nature ate away at its fabric and other less-than- robust pieces. With the restoration complete, local pilot and Keuka Lake native Rob Kinyoun was contracted to test fly the aircraft in Washington prior to its trip to NY. With only minor adjustments needed before its trip east, the Century Aviation crew packed up the “F-Boat” on its specialized trailer; Hammondsport or bust!

Once on location in Hammondsport, the Model F became the main attraction during the week surrounding the Wings and Wheels event. Though it only flew a handful of times, the sound of an original OX-5 engine pushing the homegrown aircraft across the water was a truly remarkable event and a profound achievement for the Century Aviation team. 04 AEROGRAM AEROGRAM 05

COMING MAY 2019 “FIRST ACROSS” EXHIBIT PREVIEW

Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the first trans-Atlantic crossing by air. In recognition of this historic event, the Curtiss Museum will be presenting a series of opportunities for the public to engage with us as we learn more about the people and machines who made it possible. Below is an excerpt from a manuscript published by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company in 1919 titled “The Flight Across the Atlantic.”

ABOVE Photograph shows Navy-Curtiss NC-4 in Ponta Dellgada, the Azores, Portugal after its first trans-Atlantic journey in 1919 (George Grantham Bain Collection – Library of Congress).

A faint but penetrating hum grew in the sunset over Lisbon. It was an alien sound to the old city beside the Tagus. It seemed to have no location, but to diffuse itself through the sky, growing in volume and intensity.

Suddenly with a jet of steam the U.S.S. Shawmut and the U.S.S. Rochester sent a shrilling answer.

“There she is!” came a voice, cutting the great spaces like a thin ray of light.

Sirens, guns of Fort San Julian and Bugio, cannon of Portuguese warships, and the shouts of innumerable men on land and water echoed from wall to wall of the natural amphitheatre. A silhouette became visible against rosy banners of cloud. It gathered definite shape, the noise of its motors became loud and thundering. With a gleam of wings the NC-4, completing the first flight ever made by men across the Atlantic ocean, dove in a wide spiral toward the river and came to rest upon it as lightly as the vessel of a dream. 06 AEROGRAM CURTISS GLIDER

ART WILDER’S RESTORATION SHOP UPDATE

P-40 WARHAWK The P-40 project is making progress. We continue to work on the cable controls ELEVATOR PLANS P-40 from the control stick and rudder pedals to the tail surfaces. This involves many pulleys in specialized mountings attached to the fuselage bulkheads. We are machining parts to adapt several donated propeller blades from a C-47 to the original prop hub, and these are coming along nicely.

CURTISS GLIDER Our dedicated crew is also continuing work on the Curtiss Glider’s. The internal wiring of the wing is close to completion and we are making progress on connecting the .

ALBANY FLYER The last wing sections for the Albany Flyer are painted, and assembly of the aeroplane is continuing in the main shop.

RESTORATIONS ALBANY FLYER OX5 AVIATION PIONEERS

The Curtiss Wing and our Museum hosted the 2018 reunion of this group October 12th through 14th. Attendees from Alaska and all over the continental U.S. were in attendance. Three men were inducted into the OX5 Hall of Fame, including former Curtiss Museum volunteer and pilot Jim Poel. Jim’s brother, Chuck and daughter, Debbie, were in attendance. Check out Jim’s name plate on the lower left corner of the Hall of Fame plaque on the side of the “Thinkorium” next time you’re in the museum! 08 AEROGRAM AEROGRAM 09

THE EARLY FEBRUARY 23RD & 24 TH CURTISS YEARS WINTERCYCLE THERAPY 2019 REDISCOVERED:

Wintercycle Therapy returns PART II OF III February 23rd and 24th at the Curtiss Museum. In addition to our existing Though we frequently discuss the many “Firsts” in ’s storied collection, more than 100 additional career, there remain many discoveries yet to make. New information vintage motorcycles will be on display from our research has found even more “forgotten” facts about Glenn’s early career in motorcycles and aviation. throughout the weekend. Alongside the motorcycles we’ll have vendors We frequently reference Curtiss as the “Fastest Man on Earth” for his from across the region, delicious record-setting V8 run, but did you know he also set a speed record food, raffles, and more! at Ormond Beach, FL in 1907 with a single cylinder motorcycle? His single cylinder victory raised the tally to three speed records set that weekend, instead of just two as previously thought. And as for the local RAFFLE BIKE: motorcycle industry, not only was Hammondsport the home to Hercules, 1974 SUZUKI TRIALS RL 250 Curtiss and Marvel motorcycles, both Mesco and Erie Motorcycles were produced here between 1906 and 1910 under Leonard “Tank” Waters Stop by the Curtiss Museum between (Glenn’s close friend) guidance, placing five brands of motorcycles to now and February 23 to buy your Hammondsport’s credit. ticket for a chance to win our raffle Another new piece of information relates to Glenn’s first brush with the bike, a 1974 Suzuki Trials RL 250! aeronautics crowd, actually placing his interaction with aviation took place in 1903 (not with Thomas S. Baldwin in 1904!) when he contracted Tickets are $5 each or five to build and deliver a V-4 engine to a Mr. Thomas Benbow for his dirigible tickets for $20! “The Montana Meteor” being built in Frankfort, NY. Glenn personally delivered the engine by motorcycle. A 300 mile round trip that was newsworthy in itself that year. However, it was Baldwin’s publicity in 1904 at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition that put Curtiss in the aeronautical spotlight and sparked a flurry of activity here in Hammondsport. As to dirigibles, we know Glenn partnered with Baldwin in 1907 to build the Army’s first lighter-than-air machine, the SC-1. What has been forgotten is that just a few short months after taking his first ride in one that year, Glenn H. Curtiss actually set an aeronautical endurance record in Hammondsport. On November 26th, 1907, while giving a demonstration of the durability of his engines to the U. S. Army, Glenn stayed aloft in a dirigible under motor power for four consecutive hours beating the previous record by one hour. This revelation came under the headlines in several major newspapers of: ANOTHER AERIAL RECORD IS GONE, Shattered by G. H. Curtiss in Hammondsport. It doesn’t end here folks, there’s much more to come so stay tuned for Part Three.

RICHARD LEISENRING, JR. Curator GLENN H. CURTISS MUSEUM 8419 State Route 54 Hammondsport, NY 14840 p 607 569 2160 f 607 569 2040 [email protected]

MUSEUM HOURS November 01 - April 30 Monday - Sunday, 10am - 4pm

May 01 - October 31 Monday - Sunday, 9am - 5pm

MUSEUM CLOSED New Year's Day Easter Sunday Thanksgiving Day Christmas Eve Christmas Day

PLANNED GIVING By including the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in your will, trust, or beneficiary CREATE A LASTING LEGACY designation, you can pass on your love of history and innovation to future generations. These gifts cost you nothing now and allow you to change your mind at any time.

When you are ready to create your legacy of innovation please contact us at [email protected]. You can also simply use the following language in your will or trust: "I would like to include the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum – a 501(c)3 organization in Hammondsport, NY, Tax ID 16-6061761 – as a beneficiary."

WINTER ISSUE JANUARY 2019 AEROGRAM NEWSLETTER HAMMONDSPORT, NY CURTISSMUSEUM.COM